Harry Potter and Voldemort's Bane
by Prince of Enchanters
Summary: What if two stanger's showed up at Hogwarts in Harry fifth year. And what about the strange end to the Triwizards Tournament, could they have something to do with it? Are they even brothers and why do they sound like they've been in lots of life and death situations? Arthur/Merlin slash, the rest of the pairings are normal. Don't like, don't read.
1. Chapter 1

**Voila, I've decided to try my hand in a Merlin and Harry Potter crossover. I've been considering it for a really long time and so on since Merlin absolutely rocks and all that. As such I'd really appreciate commentary on my writing and if I've stayed in character and all that. Thanks**

**Disclaimer: Saying it only once, own nothing.**

**WARNING: Merlin and Arthur slash and kissing and all that (MEANING, MALE/MALE). You have been warned. **

Chapter One: Merlin

Merlin paced the length of his apartment, situated in Baker Street, London. More specifically, it was his and Arthur's newest apartment that Arthur had insisted they buy some five years ago. The large window in the living room provided Merlin with the perfect view of the grey clouds and constantly busy streets of the area so different from Camelot and even more so for Ealdor. Yes, the twentieth century sure was different from where Merlin had grown up. Silently, Merlin had always speculated that the only reason why he and Arthur were able to adjust so well to the present was because of their immortality that had allowed them to witness and be part of the changing world.

At first it had only been Merlin who was immortal, a fact discovered by Gwen when she'd made the harmless comment of him still looking so young while they all aged. After some research, they'd discovered that it was the power of Merlin's magic and its proximity to the Old Religion that was the cause. It had been strange, seeing the world go by while he stayed young, suspended in time for eternity.

But luckily, he had not been doomed to live out forever on his own.

It had all started with the Battle at Camlann, when Arthur had gone into battle, completely ignoring Merlin's terrified protests in favour of bringing _justice _to the world. Merlin had followed him into battle, at his side like always, and had been about to defeat Morgana when Arthur had been struck my Mordred. Merlin had never felt more horror than that moment when he watched Arthur fall, Mordred's sword protruding from his back. Merlin, in a fit of rage, had thrown both Morgana and Mordred aside and rushed to Arthur's side, transporting them to the Isles of the Blessed where he proceeded to beg for Arthur's life like never before. Unfortunately, like many times before, the Old Religion was unwilling to take Merlin's life so Arthur could live and Arthur might have stayed dead forever had Morgana not arrived.

Thinking back, it could be nothing short of ironic that the person who was so bent on destroying Arthur, would be the one to save him. Merlin had acted out of instinct, killing Morgana with words he would later be unable to recall and, like a miracle, Arthur had woken up from the dead, Morgana's life in exchange for Arthur's. It was only later that Merlin would come to realized that he'd somehow tied his and Arthur's souls together, stranding Arthur in the same ageless state as Merlin.

Unfortunately, Camelot could not be saved in the same manner and the great kingdom fell soon after, driven into the ground by its own people. The whole of Albion collapsed in on itself while Merlin fled with an unwilling Arthur.

For seven long years Merlin was convinced that Arthur hated him since, after their escape from Camelot, the king had disappeared from his life, leaving Merlin to live in regret as he convinced himself that Camelot's downfall had been his fault.

It had been far from pleasant as he pondered whether he could've saved Camelot if his magic been stronger, while another part of his mind constantly wondered over the health of his king. Still, Merlin did not try searching for his missing king, afraid of the anger he would have to face if he found him. Now though, Merlin dreaded to think how much longer they could have been separated had they not met again, practically in the middle of nowhere only to later find out that the bond that had been created after Arthur initial death, had been the reason for them finding one another once again.

It took time, but Arthur had reluctantly come to terms with Camelot's loss and had agreed that they needed to stick together since they were all that was left of their old life.

Strangely, living an eternity with Arthur hadn't been as difficult as Merlin had first suspected it would be, but that was quite possibly because they were already so used to each other's quirks. Not to say they didn't fight, but it didn't feel as if anything had really changed between them. Well, Merlin considered, there was one thing and that was the fact that Merlin had realized he loved Arthur in a none-plutonic way.

When Merlin first came to notice his developing feelings for the former king, he'd truly tried his best to deny them, terrified of losing Arthur if were to find out. He'd done a good job of keeping Arthur in the dark for the most part but somewhere along the line Arthur must have lost his obliviousness since he started questioning Merlin about his relationships and romantic interests, practically getting Merlin to confess, to Merlin's greatest horror. The confession had been followed by two nights spelt locked in his room while Arthur schemed behind his back. On the second night, he broke into his room and kissed Merlin awake, the only person in the world who could've succeeded in such a scheme since Merlin's magic was unguarded towards Arthur. Even so, it had taken Arthur a few speeches to convince Merlin that he truly did feel the same way towards him.

After that, they'd gone from publicly married to posing as brothers, whatever was acceptable at the time. But as long as they were together, Merlin found he really didn't care.

Of course, as the time passed, the world changed and magic along with it, growing weaker over time.

Merlin had been distraught when the humans used this to their advantage and started forcing sorcerers, or wizards and witches as they were now called, into hiding once more, effectively destroying all he and Arthur had worked so hard to build. The sorcerers in turn, had retaliated and Merlin had changed into his Dragoon form one last time in an effort to force peace between the human, now known as muggle, world and the sorcerers' world. Unfortunately that had resulted in Merlin being forever known as an old man with the white beard and long hair instead of the reality of his permanent youth. Arthur had of course teased him endlessly for it.

Merlin's last input, though unknown to anyone else, had been to build Hogwarts with the _Founders _since both he and Arthur had agreed that they couldn't allow anything else to be built on the ground that had once supported the great city of Camelot.

Despite it all, it seemed that their peaceful life would soon be disturbed if Merlin didn't take matters into his own hands, a decision that had not gone down well with Arthur but that he had eventually conceded to, promising that Merlin would owe him big time when it was over.

Merlin wasn't too fazed, knowing that, despite what Arthur said and pretended, he also wanted to do something to help rid the wizarding world of the murder known as Voldemort.

The sorcerer had immerged some twenty five years earlier, bent on _purifying_ the wizarding world of human-born wizards and witches. Back then, Merlin had been set on going out and destroying the man but his gut had stopped him, an indication from the magic of the Old Religion that he should stay put. Merlin had relented but Arthur hadn't been so easy to convince. So they moved to Africa, disguised as normal humans while they watched the wizarding world war from afar.

For eleven years he and Arthur watched, from a distance, as human and human-born alike were slaughtered and threatened until, by some miracle, Voldemort vanished: Banished by a year old baby named Harry Potter, the boy who lived.

But it was not to last.

It had been a few months back that Merlin received the vision, coming in a dream like they'd always done with Morgana, and Merlin had heeded the warning. Voldemort was coming back and they could and would do something about it.

So he and Arthur had lain out a plan and were quick to execute it too, sending in a request to attend Hogwarts as students for the coming year or more if need be, so they could keep an eye on everything while undercover. Merlin had never been so glad that the circumstances of Arthur's birth allowed Arthur the ability to wield a wand, or maybe it was that he and Merlin's souls were now connected, but either way Arthur was able to practice this weaker form of magic. That at least allowed him to be part of the wizarding world as equally as any other wizard, with the exception of having Merlin as his mentor. It also meant that Merlin wouldn't be forced to attend Hogwarts on his own.

Still, delaying Voldemort's return was completely up too Merlin since he'd realized that having Arthur there would only complicating things and possibly put Arthur in unnecessary danger. Of course Arthur had felt the need to throw a tantrum when Merlin had informed him of this, stubbornly denying it when Merlin pointed out that Arthur seemed to be worried about him.

Now though, Arthur was sat on his fake leather chair – Merlin insisted that they stop buying real leather the second it had become a possibility – scowling slightly as he watched Merlin pace. Merlin knew Arthur hated it when he showed his anxiety but he couldn't help it. Merlin's mind had been on edge all day and his gaze was constantly wandering towards the clock on the brick wall.

Only a few more minutes to go.

"Damn it Merlin, I've changed my mind. I'm not letting you go!" Arthur finally snapped, shooting up from his seat.

"Don't start with that again!" Merlin shot back, pausing in his pacing to glare at Arthur.

"You're not leaving and that's final," Arthur stated, folding his arms over his chest stubbornly, determination glinting in his eyes.

"Don't be ridiculous Arthur, if you don't let me do this, the whole wizarding world will suffer, it's like asking me not to give my life up for you if I have to," Merlin reminded with an agitated roll of his own eyes, the strangeness of his second declaration had worn off decades ago.

"I can't lose you Merlin," Arthur insisted, his voice was as passionate as ever but Merlin couldn't let himself be swayed, instead simply closing his eyes when he felt Arthur's arm encircling his waist and savouring the familiar feeling of his husband pressed up behind him.

"You know I can't let this happen, I won't fail again," Merlin murmured as he turned around slowly lowering his head so he could bury it in the crook of Arthur's neck while trying to block out his memories of Arthur's death.

Pulling himself away from the memories and glancing once at his wedding ring for reassurance, Merlin turned back to the task of convincing Arthur.

"It is my destiny to protect you Arthur and I will do so to my dying breath but I'm the embodiment of magic as well and the Old Religion put me here to help. I'm not just here to play your personal servant." his voice was gentle, almost reassuring but it still left no room for argument. The last part however, was added in a joking tone as he tried to make light of the situation.

That said, Merlin glanced over at the clock before placing a chaste kiss on Arthur's half opened lips, pulling back to study his husband's face with an intense gaze that eventually forced a reaction from the former king. "Don't look at me like that, I'm not a child I can take care of myself!" he exclaimed, pulling back and folding his arms stubbornly once more, the perfect picture of a pouting child.

"You still have to convince me of that, besides, this shouldn't take more than five minutes at the most!" Merlin grinned.

"So if it does then I should start worrying?" Arthur questioned with a raised eyebrow, his voice giving no indication as to how he was feeling.

"Arthur! I'll be back before you know it!" Merlin's voice conveyed his exasperation as he stared at his husband imploringly.

Arthur didn't respond and Merlin bit his lip, suddenly realizing just how worried Arthur really was about him. It had been centuries since they took part in anything dangerous even though Arthur insisted on them practicing their sword fighting, self-defence and magic every week.

"I'll be safe, Arthur, I swear," Merlin promised, his voice serious once more.

"I'm holding you to that," Arthur replied, his voice formal and strained with his hidden emotions.

Nodding, Merlin turned to the clock and silently counted off the seconds before his eyes flashed and a wind whipped into existence, a transportation spell long forgotten by modern-day sorcerers.

The world started spinning around him and in an instant he was stood in the centre of a labyrinth, the dark green walls of the hedges surrounding him and a pedestal stationed a few feet away from him. The sound of approaching footfalls jerked him back to reality and his magic sprang into action his eyes flashing gold as time bent to his will, slowing down considerably to accommodate him.

Lifting his hand he felt his magic surge up inside him, coming to rest at his fingertips, ready for his next action.

"Afierran bealo" the words fell easily from his lips, more powerful than anything left in human memory. As expected, his magic flared out, eliminating the second transportation spell and leaving only the well-intended spell to stay. Moving his still outstretched hand, Merlin aimed it elsewhere before repeating the spell. A cry of pain quick reached his ears, confirming that he'd hit his target, and his would be attacker flew into the air.

In his mind's eye, Merlin watched as the man landed outside of the maze, in front of a crowd of people who gasped at his harsh landing. As they and Merlin watched, the man's appearance changed from that of an old man to that of a sick-looking, young on, his wooden leg and magic eye obviously not needed for his true form.

Coming back to himself, Merlin allowed time to take its natural course as wind whipped up around him once more, taking him away from the maze before the footfalls breached the middle of the maze.

Merlin gasped as he landed back in the apartment and was immediately envelop by Arthur's warm body as his husband hugged him.

Merlin breathed a sigh of relief and closed his eyes as he felt Arthur's finger in his hair, massaging his scalp in a way that told Merlin that Arthur was actually trying to calm _himself_. Smiling at this realization, Merlin allowed his body to melt into Arthur's, contenting himself with simply being held till Arthur felt ready to let go.

When Arthur finally collected himself enough to pull away, Merlin offered him a cheeky grin, rolling his eyes in mock exasperation.

"I told you I'd be fine," he said, his voice as exasperated as his eye gesture.

"Because your always, _fine, _aren't you _Mer_lin?" Arthur questioned, his voice back to the sarcastic and cocky tone Merlin was used to and that he'd strangely come to love.

"Prat!" Merlin accused before turning and jogging into their bedroom, immediately recognizing the devious look in Arthur's eyes and knowing that nothing good could come of it.

**Well, there you have it, my first chapter, more explanations about Merlin and Arthur soon to come so don't worry. Please review and tell me what you thought of it, thanks.**

**Review.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Yay, second chapter's finally and I actually got 225 hits on the first chapter though unfortunately my reviews don't really reflect that, anyway, thanks to everyone for reviewing, you're awesome and I'm unbelievable grateful to you, I just hope that you'll enjoy the second chapter as well.**

**Humanized Serenity:**

**I just wanted to say thanks for the awesome review and of course Arthur and Merlin are going to have aliases though it's not going to be the actors' names. Also, I'm not to against Dumbledore since I think his something of a good man who probably just let his long life and overall wisdom go to his head. Anyway, his not going to find out too soon and I'll enjoy every moment of Arthur and Merlin fooling everyone since, in most Harry Potter/ Merlin fic Dumbledore knows from the beginning and the Golden Trio gets suspicious to quickly for my taste. Obviously, since Dumbledore's going to be unaware of who Arthur and Merlin really are, he won't have reason to try and work them into his plan to keep Harry ignorant but Arthur and Merlin aren't really the type to follow orders and expectations anyhow so I'll have fun writing about that. **

**Anyway, here's the next chapter. Enjoy**

Chapter Two: Harry

Harry groaned and elbowed rather desperately at the weight on top of him, relieved when the body scrambled off of him. Head throbbing, Harry sat up glad when he realized that the Triwizards Tournament was finally over and they were back outside the maze, the cup having apparently been a Portkey.

Harry blinked when he felt a pull at the cup. Looking over, he realized that it was Cedric trying to get up, and it became apparent that they'd both reached and grabbed the cup at the same time, it was a tie.

"Well done Mr Potter, Mr Diggory it appears we have a tie on our hands. Your prize will be handed over tonight." Dumbledore smiled and Harry founded himself exchanging looks with Cedric, both grinning at each other in relief. "And after all that excitement, I suspect everyone will want to be excused to ready themselves for the celebration feast and then we will see you all tonight," Dumbledore said, clapping his hands together to disperse everyone before holding his hand out and Harry and Cedric reached out as one to hand the cup over to him.

"Harry!" Hermione's sudden exclamation was enough to pull Harry out of his slight daze of victory and Hermione crashed into him before Harry had time to search for her and Harry resisted the urge to gasp as all the air was squeezed out of him by Hermione's hug.

"Alright there, Harry?" Ron questioned when Hermione finally let go and stepped away from him.

"Alright," Harry agreed with a nod and a small smile which Ron returned though Harry could tell that he still harboured some guilt over their fall out earlier that year. Harry smiled a bit wider, trying to convey his forgiveness. The vocal assurance that would have followed was, however, cut off when he felt a pair of eyes on his back and turned to see Dumbledore approaching them with a stern look in his eyes, making Harry hesitate.

"I'll see you guys later," he quickly whispered to Ron and Hermione, somehow knowing that Dumbledore wanted to speak with him. Receiving two reluctant nods from his friends, Harry headed towards Dumbledore who had already turned and was heading towards the castle, his robs bellowing around him and somehow increasing the air of power he seemed to exude.

"Is something wrong, Professor?" Harry asked nervously, panting slightly as he jogged to catch up to the man.

"It appears so, it seems Voldemort wanted to use the Tournament to try and rise once more," Dumbledore said and Harry felt his heart stop for just a moment at the news. Had he really heard that correctly? For a moment, Harry simply stared ahead, unable to see or hear anything as he tried to process what had been said. Finally he managed a shocked and slightly breathless: "How's that possible!" though he still couldn't find it in him to start walking again, his legs having gone numb from the news.

"Barty Crouch's son was one of Voldemort's followers. He was thought to be gravely ill but it was a rouse, brought about from Mr. Crouch's embarrassment over his son involvement with the dark magic. He disappeared at the Quidditch World cup and was the one who summoned the dark mark. Somehow, he received orders from Voldemort and came here, disguised as Alastor while keeping him captured in a trunk to supply him with the Polyjuice Potion needed to fool everyone. I regret to say that I never suspected him of being an imposter." Dumbledore explained before giving Harry a sign to be quiet as they started walking again, making their way up the hill and through the school. Only when Harry was seated in one of the chairs in Dumbledore's office, did the headmaster speak again.

"Voldemort wanted you to take part in the competition; everyone's distrust in you would make you appear unreliable and would certainly cut you off from the everyone else. It made you an easier access. That was the main reason for Mr Crouch Jr.'s involvement. He needed someone to put your name in the goblet and to ensure that you reached the third task." Dumbledore paused, his brow wrinkling as he seemed to consider something.

"The question remains, how did Voldemort fail?" Dumbledore mused, seemingly more to himself than to Harry but he decided to ask anyway.

"What do you mean, Professor?" everything was happening so fast that Harry was having a difficult time keeping track of it all but Voldemort's plan mysteriously failing, certainly was strange, and maybe even slightly unnerving since, in the past, there'd usually been a reason for his failure.

"The cup was a Portkey, but it was tampered with by Mr Crouch Jr. so it would allow you to be transported to a graveyard where Voldemort would have been resurrected but when we examined the cup, no traces of the spell could be found. As if it had vanished into thin air. We all agree that it's a bit strange and Snape has assured me that it was meant to be impossible. But perhaps we have a guardian angel in our midst" Dumbledore mused, icy blue eyes regarding Harry with great wisdom and clear mischief. Harry could only nodded numbly in agreement, fearing how his voice would sound if he tried to speak.

"But then, the wizarding world remains a mystery to even those as old as I. We can only hope that the destruction of Voldemort's father's grave, will delay him for some time," Dumbledore exclaimed, his eyes sparking slightly as he clapped his hands together, making Harry jump in his seat before he recovered himself.

"Now then, I have detained you long enough, you may leave to ready yourself for the feast," Dumbledore announced as he stood up, prompting Harry to do the same. Getting up, Harry paused, wanting desperately to know more about Voldemort's plans but knowing that the subjected had already been closed.

"Oh, and Harry," Dumbledore called out just as he was leave. Looking over his shoulder, Harry found Dumbledore offering him a small smile, his blue eyes still sparkling though they appeared softer somehow. "I wish to apologize for doubting you this past year." Harry stared, amazed and eternally grateful for what he'd just heard. Dumbledore was like a father to him and the man's apology meant more than Harry could ever hope to explain.

"Thank you, Professor," was all Harry could mumble before leaving as quickly as his legs would allow him.

* * *

"Something strange is going on," Hermione declared later that night as the three friends secluded themselves in a corner of the Gryffindor common room. Harry had just finished telling them about his time in the maze as well as what Dumbledore had said and he was now chewing distractedly on a liquorish wand while Hermione paced in front of them.

"_He's_ back, of course there something wrong!" Ron exclaimed, causing Harry to grimace as he watched a piece of a cauldron cake fall from his friend's mouth.

"Don't speak while you're eating!" Hermione screeched, her face coloured with obvious disgust.

Ron glared but didn't say anything as he swallowed the cake and whipped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"I mean, the guy's a real lunatic ain't he, trying to get Harry into a graveyard so he can come back from the dead," Ron remarked though Harry didn't miss the colour draining slightly from his friend's face at his own comment.

"That's beside the point, Ronald!" Hermione exclaimed once more, throwing her hands up in the air in frustration. "For one there's the fact that the spell that was supposed to take Harry to the graveyard, just disappeared. Portkey spells are very powerful since they're made to be able to transport more than one person anywhere in the world. Whoever removed that spell should've been exhausted afterwards not to mention that the spell used to remove the Portkey spell, didn't leave any traces on the cup. That's never happened before, even children under eleven can be traced since every witch and wizard is written up in the Ministry when they're born. And what about the fact that no one was their when you entered the middle of the maze and he wasn't anywhere else in the maze when Dumbledore removed it, the maze would've trapped him in since the Tournament is over. People can't apparate out of Hogwarts, but this person just happens to have disappeared?" Hermione explained, her voice having turned to a conspirator whisper sometime during her explanation.

Ron snorted in obvious disbelief.

"What, you think he doesn't _exist_? He just saved Harry's life, Hermione!" Ron asked incredulously.

Harry wanted to agree but he couldn't ignore the sudden chilling thought that maybe some kind of ghost might've helped him, maybe someone from the graveyard that he'd been supposed to go to.

"Why does it have to be a guy, who says it's not a girl!" Hermione's tone turned suddenly accusatory as she planted her hands on her hips and glared at Ron. Harry sighed, but paused as his mind drifted to something else.

"What happened with the fake Moody anyway, Dumbledore said he didn't suspect him of being fake, so how did he find out about him then?" Harry questioned frowning as he stared off into the fire, trying to puzzle it out for himself.

"Well…" Ron started seemingly struggling to find the right words to explain.

"Whoever removed the spell on the cup probably hit Mr Crouch and he landed outside of the maze before turning into himself, it unsettled everyone, Karkaroff and Madame Maxime were furious so Dumbledore asked Snape to take him to his classroom and then you and Cedric showed up." Hermione sighed and Harry felt his frown to deepen.

"Is that even possible, to remove a Polyjuice Potion like that?" Harry elaborated, thinking back to when he, Ron and Hermione had, had to us it.

"Not that I've read about, I mean, there is a potion to reverse the effects of the potion but not the way it happened today. It's described as looking like "a mask is being pulled off of the person's face" but with Mr Crouch, Moody's face just seemed to melt away so that his real appears was left over," Hermione murmured, shaking her head slightly as she thought over the events that occurred earlier that day.

"So then, what are we dealing with?" Harry wondered aloud, watching as the flames from the fire danced around in front of him.

**So there you go, please review and I hope it met your expectations, thanks.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here's the third chapter, finally. I just wanted to tell you that I'll probably only stick with Harry, Merlin and Arthur's point of views. If I decided to write in another point of view then it'll only be because I believe it to be absolutely necessary. Oh, as for the Sorting Hat's song, I hope it's okay since I made it up myself. Also keep in mind since Harry and Voldemort don't share the same blood and since Voldemort hasn't reached his real form yet, Harry won't be so affected by Voldemort as he was in the fifth book. What I really mean to say is keep in mind that because of Merlin's interference, much will be different, most people don't realize how easily one thing can affect another, Sorting Hat songs included. Anyway, enjoy and I hope it was worth the wait since at least it's the longest chapter so far. **

Chapter Three: Arthur

Arthur grinned as he stared up at the familiar castle of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Hogwarts was the only wizarding school that Merlin had allowed them to go to before since it had previously been disconnected from the Ministry of Magic and as such, was the only place where they could go to school without their lack of registration at the Ministry, being a problem. Unfortunately the same could not be said for Hogwarts this year since the Ministry had sent a woman called Delores Umbridge to keep an eye on things. According to Merlin it would be risky to be here this year. Still, this information was not enough to put a dent in their plans.

The first time around, Arthur hadn't been too keen on going but had ended up going anyway thanks to Merlin who had wanted to see what it would be like to study at a place where magic was part of the syllabus instead of being a teacher like he'd been in Camelot.

But, as the years had passed, Arthur too, had come to see the school as a second home, the only other constant in his life besides Merlin.

Of course, Merlin being Merlin had started working on their cover story the moment he'd had his vision and had insisted that they call each other by their fake names for the past few months so they'd have time to get used to them before the school year started. Now he and Merlin were going by the unlikely names of Armand and Emerson Pendragon, stepbrothers according to the rest of the world. That way, people wouldn't question why they looked nothing alike.

"Armand?" came Merlin's questioning voice from beside him and Arthur ached to hear his real name falling from those lips or even to feel Merlin lace their fingers together in an effort to comfort him. It was surprising and slightly humiliating to think how much Arthur had and still did depend on Merlin but now he was forced to make do with the hand he felt resting on his shoulder, after all they were currently sharing a boat with two curious-looking first years who had apparently not been taught that staring was rude.

"I'm fine," Arthur reassured Merlin, dipping his head and looking to the side as he often did when coming out of deep thought. Seeing the obvious concern in Merlin's icy blue eyes, Arthur allowed a small smile to grace his face before looking back at the castle, his hand dipping to the inside of his cloak where Excalibur rested reassuringly in the wand form that Merlin had adapted for both it and Merlin's staff. They'd long since found out that modern-day wands blew up if Merlin so much as tried to conduct his magic through them.

They also now appeared to be fifteen thanks to the crystals that both of them were sporting around their necks along with their wedding rings which Arthur always made sure to carry around with him. Some might say that he had a bit of an abandonment issue though that was slightly ironic if one took into consideration the fact that he'd been the one to abandon Merlin after Camelot's fall. Bowing his head in shame, Arthur studied Merlin through the gap in his bangs.

Seeing Merlin as an eleven year old with his overly large ears and slightly chubby cheeks, had always been slightly amusing to Arthur but by the age of fifteen Merlin had clearly grown into his ears as much as he ever would and was now a startlingly skinny and gangly boy with longish hair that covered his ears in just the right way. It also happened to highlight his cheekbones, pale skin and icy eyes rather well giving Merlin a definite appearance of being handsome. Arthur made a quick note to keep an eye out for any possible admirers Merlin might collect.

Arthur grinned to himself at the thought.

"What's so funny?" Merlin demanded, grinning, though his brow was furrowed with uncertainty.

"Do you really expect me to answer that," he questioned with a chuckled tucking his hand in front of his mouth to try and smother the sound as he cast his gaze sideways in an effort to look innocent.

Unfortunately it seemed Merlin had other ideas and Arthur let out a cry of protest as he was pushed into the Great Lake though not before gabbing hold of Merlin and pulling him in as well.

With something resembling a grin, Arthur plunged into the water with Merlin at his side and they were quickly deposited back on their boat by the Giant Squad that had occupied the water of the Great Lake for so long.

"I can't believe you did that you old prat!" Merlin exclaimed between all his coughing and Arthur rolled his eyes as he wacked Merlin on the back, grinning through it all.

"You started it; pushing me off the boat like that!" Arthur shot back, gesturing towards the water in an effort to emphasize his point.

Coughing one last time, Merlin regarded Arthur carefully as if afraid that he would throw him in the water again before whipping a hand across his face and licking his lips clear of water. Letting out a sigh, Merlin ran a hand through his hair so it stood up on all ends and Arthur snorted in amusement.

"You look like you had a fight with your pillow!" Arthur felt the need to point out and received a sour look in return before Merlin reached up and ruffled his hair as well. Arthur let out an indignant cry before he could stop himself.

"You would know," Merlin grumbled and Arthur rolled his eyes, turning his face to the side again to hide as much of his blush as possible, there were children there for heaven's sake!

"Ohshut up, Emerson," Arthur mutteredbut added a grin to show that he only meant it as their usual banter.

Grinning back, Merlin quickly pulled out his wand and in minutes Arthur found himself dry and spotless; as if they hadn't fallen into the water at all.

It was just in time too since, seconds later, the boat pulled up on the other side of the lake and everybody got off.

"Come on, _Merlin_, let's go," Arthur said grinning as he hooked an arm around Merlin's neck and dragged him off their boat behind the first years.

Merlin shot him a look at hearing his real name being mentioned but Arthur ignored it. He wasn't too bothered by using Merlin's real name, knowing that anyone who overheard would simply write it off as being a nickname or that he was teasing the boy for the magic he'd just used.

Seeing that Merlin obviously didn't agree with him, Arthur rolled his eyes but shot him an apologetic look none the less. "Sorry, won't happen again," Arthur promised knowing that, if someone was sharp and curious enough, a comment like that could've given their entire secret away, given enough time.

Arthur grinned however as Merlin thinned his lips and widened his eyes before giving a quick nod the way he always did when he'd finished mentally preparing himself for something.

"Come on. I can't wait all day," Arthur stated as he started steering both Merlin and himself towards the entrance hall, yelping when Merlin flicked his ear and disappeared from underneath his arm. Arthur didn't hesitate to go after Merlin's retreating figure and they soon caught up with the first years as they entered the hall.

However, both he and Merlin came to a sudden stop when they lay eyes on the witch standing there waiting for them. She was tall with black hair pinned into a neat bun and her face pulled into a stern look. Her emerald green robes made her look quite elegant while the square rimmed glasses only added to her already stern look.

A glance over at Merlin confirmed that he seemed to be thinking the exact same thing.

"As you may have heard, I am Professor McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress as well as the Head of House for Gryffindor," Arthur grimaced slightly, knowing immediately that she would soon become his head of house. It was an easy guess since the hat had always taken to placing him in Gryffindor with Merlin mostly following. Arthur couldn't help envying Merlin slightly since he had the free will to choose where he wanted to be placed because he was '_the embodiment of all that the Hogwarts Houses stood for'_ and had been in all of the Houses before apart from Slytherin.

It was understandable really; a Gryffindor and a Slytherin being friends would draw too much unwanted attention towards them and so Merlin had never tried it before.

"Now, welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room."

"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours. The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting," she finished before surprisingly turning her eyes on Arthur and Merlin.

"Mssrs. Pendragon?" she questioned and Arthur nodded feeling glad to have Merlin by his side as Professor McGonagall indicated for them to follow her.

She led them into a corridor and turned into the first classroom offered before holding up the familiar hat that had always been used to decide his house for him.

"Armand Pendragon?" McGonagall said with a raised eyebrow and Arthur stepped forward as she pulled a chair out from behind one of the student desks and directed him towards it.

Arthur was quick to follow orders, eager to get it over with so he and Merlin would be allowed to join their new house and maybe get some food into their bodies.

Shooting Merlin one last grin he focussed on the hat as it was placed on his head, pleased when it didn't fall over his eyes the way it always did when he started here as a first year.

However, the hat was barely there for two second before the word: "GRYFFINDOR!" rang out from the hat and Arthur couldn't help blinking in surprise. The hat never declared it so quickly, preferring to take its time to talk to both him and Merlin since they shared an _immortal view on life_, as the hat called it.

Nevertheless, Arthur stood up the moment McGonagall took the hat and Merlin quickly took his place when McGonagall called his name; looking like the classic depiction of a wizard with the hat perched on his head like that. Unsurprisingly or surprisingly depending on how you looked at it, the hat took more time placing Merlin if only half a minute more as it unearthed Merlin's reason for wanting to be in Gryffindor this time 'round and a smile stretched across Arthur's face as Merlin was declared a Gryffindor once more.

McGonagall nodded to herself as she removed the hat from Merlin's head. "Welcome to Gryffindor, you may go ahead and join your house table so long," she motioned and Arthur followed Merlin out of the room, giving his husband's shoulder a quick squeeze before they slipped into the hall.

* * *

Within minutes Arthur found himself seated almost across from the infamous Harry Potter while Merlin sat next to him, biting his lip and tapping his foot in display of his nervousness. "Calm down, _Emerson_, it'll be alright," Arthur murmured, a small smile tugging at his face at the emphasis on Merlin's fake name that he usually put on his real one. The strange familiarity of it was slightly comforting.

Merlin nodded, his forehead creasing like it always did when he was worried.

But they were interrupted when the doors to the Great Hall opened once more and Professor McGonagall entered gaining everyone's attention as she along with the first years, strode down the aisle. Together, Merlin and Arthur watched as she retrieved a stool from the room behind the head table and placed it where everyone could see in front of the first years. Arthur smirked as he watched the first years shuffle around nervously. McGonagall quickly placed the Sorting Hat on the stool and the Sorting Hat began its song.

_The story of our noble school,_

_Was twisted and lost through time,_

_But I was there so I can tell,_

_Through means of song and rhyme:_

_So the builder of this fine building,_

_Made the Founders Four agree: _

"_We'll find and teach those with magic,"_

_Was what they did decree. _

_So the builder left the Founders Four,_

_To do with it what they might, _

_And so they turned this building here, _

_Into a school of great delight._

_And now we reach the story that's,_

_So well-known to all of you,_

_But let me just ask you this my friend,_

_How much of that story's true?_

_Perhaps for those whose minds are true,_

_Like Rowena Ravenclaw herself,_

_The puzzle in my short, short song,_

_Might reveal itself,_

_Or it might take a true friend,_

_Like Helga Hufflepuff,_

_Who might see the true intent,_

_And declare it good enough,_

_But might Salazar Slytherin's,_

_Cunning reveal it all,_

_And bring about what we all want,_

_The darkness' final fall,_

_Or could it be Gryffindor,_

_With the bravery of a king, _

_Now I fear I have said too much,_

_Let the Sorting now begin._

Arthur sat frozen for what felt like forever before finally willing himself to look towards his husband, the word "king" along with everything else, having thrown him off quite a bit. Merlin had stiffened and was now staring at Arthur with wide, disbelieving eyes and slightly parted lips. Arthur grimaced before forcing himself to make light of the subject.

"Come on _Emerson_, don't tell me something like that's going to stop you," he teased, punching Merlin in the arm in an effort to get his message across. Merlin swayed sideways from the impact before looking back at Arthur and thinning his lips in a resigned manner. Looking around Arthur quickly realized that everyone seemed to have broken out into whispers as they discussed the Sorting Hat's new song, one comment catching Arthur's attention in particular since it was made by a redheaded boy sitting next to him.

"What the heck was it on about? Do you think it's finally gone mad?" he questioned through a mouth full of chicken and Arthur looked towards Merlin to find his husband's eyes mirroring his own amusement and slight disgust.

"Don't be silly Ronald, obviously it has a hidden meaning behind it, didn't you notice how many time it used the word true?" a bushy haired girl sitting next to Harry Potter said, her voice exasperated.

"So it wasn't an accident?" Harry Potter questioned, brow furrowed in confusion. The bushy haired girl shook her head before her eyes seemed to brighten as it fell on something behind Arthur and the redheaded boy.

"Has it happened before?" the bush haired girl questioned and Arthur looked over his shoulder to find Nearly Headless Nick drifting in the air above them.

"No, this is the first time," Nearly Headless Nick admitted but didn't continue as his gaze landed on Arthur and Merlin.

Arthur supressed a groan as the ghost's eyes widened comically and he seemed to forget what he'd been about to say. "Um, right, well, best be off," Nearly Headless Nick said, clearing his throat rather loudly before taking off towards the Ravenclaw table.

"That's got to mean something then. Nick is old isn't he? He'd have been around if the hat had done something like this before?" Harry Potter said though he sounded uncertain and looked towards the bushy haired girl for help.

The girl nodded but didn't say anything else.

"That's a bit strange isn't it, I mean, I always thought the Founders built Hogwarts. Isn't that what it says in the books?" Merlin spoke up brow furrowing in apparent confusion. Arthur quickly slipped into character as well. Had they wanted to, Arthur was sure both he and Merlin would've made great actors.

The bushy haired girl blinked, obviously surprised as she studied Merlin with a calculating gaze before her gaze switched to Arthur. Finally she seemed to recover herself and answer.

"Well according to history they did, but…" she paused as if struggling with something. "Maybe the books were wrong," she mumbled and the redheaded boy snorted into his glass of pumpkin juice. "Oh shush Ronald," the girl hissed, hitting…Ronald…in the arm before looking back at Merlin.

"Um," she began again, seeming almost timid this time around.

"I hope you don't mind me asking are you new. It's just, I haven't seen you two around here before," her slight tendency to make sure she wasn't insulting anyone, reminded Arthur painfully of Gwen when she felt nervous. He couldn't help wondering what had happened to his wife all those years back when she thought he'd died in the Battle of Camlann, as it was now referred to by mortals.

"We lived in Wales but my father was called here on business so of course Emerson and I had to come along," Arthur jumped in to explain, pausing during the explanation so his words wouldn't sound rehearsed. "Anyway, this idiot here is Emerson and-" Arthur began to introduce but was of course interrupted by Merlin.

"Oi, Armand's the clotpole not me!" Merlin objected, shoving Arthur's shoulder and almost causing him to fall off of the bench.

A glance over at Harry Potter and his friends showed that the trio was utterly confused by Arthur and Merlin's easy banter.

"Oh shut up, _Emerson, _we both know who's lying here," Arthur stated with a twitch of his lips and a roll of his eyes.

Merlin thinned his lips and tilted his head as if to think about it, squinting slightly at Arthur for effect. "That'd be… you?" Merlin questioned before his familiar, goofy, grin spread across his face. Arthur smiled back, bumping shoulders with him.

"See what I have to deal with?" Arthur questioned Harry Potter and his friends as if searching for their sympathy.

Harry Potter grinned.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, I'm Harry and these are my friend Ron and Hermione," Harry Potter introduced and Arthur glanced over at Merlin, prompting him so they would "recognize" his name together.

"Harry Potter right?" Merlin questioned with his smile still intact. "Well it's nice to meet the man behind the legends," Merlin continued and Arthur resisted the urge to snort since Merlin really had no room to talk.

Harry smiled back at them, seemingly relieved that he hadn't received a large reaction from them, he reminded Arthur of how Merlin had been before they'd gone into hiding and he'd stopped being recognized for who he was and Arthur knew that Merlin enjoyed being treated normally much the same as Harry. Arthur himself doubted that he'd be able to go back to the life of a king after so many years even with all the sword practice that he still put in every day.

However, before they could continue with the greetings, the Great Hall fell into silence and Arthur watched as Albus Dumbledore approached the stand.

"To our newcomers," Dumbledore said, voice ringing in the room and his arms stretched wide with a beaming smile on his lips, "Welcome! To our old hands - welcome back! There is a time for speech-making, but this is not it. Tuck in!"

Arthur grinned, already liking the headmaster. Though he knew that he and Merlin would soon be struggling to keep Albus here while Umbridge tried to get rid of him for the Ministry.

**Review please and tell me if you think it's okay.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry it took so long to update but I was away on holiday for a while and though I did write this chapter there, I had no way of posting it. So, here we are!**

Chapter Four: Harry

"But, Hermione, if the books are wrong, how come the Sorting Hat never told anyone before?" Ron questioned and Harry nodded in agreement while the two new students stared at Hermione curiously, seeming to want to know more as well.

While Harry had taken it upon himself to study the two new students, he'd come to the quick conclusion that all of the other boys would suffer because of the two's arrival. Harry had already seen at least seventeen girls looking their way, Slytherins included though they tried their best not to show it too much.

Harry grimaced slightly when he found himself staring at Cho Chang knowing that she and Cedric were now officially going out with each other. It was truly sad that Harry still had a crush on her.

"So, who is she?" Armand questioned and Harry looked towards the blonde haired boy to find him staring at Cho, smirking slightly but obviously not the least bit interested in the girl's looks like Harry might have otherwise assumed.

"Cho Chang, the boy next to her, Cedric Diggory, was in the Triwizards Tournament with Harry last year," Hermione jumped in to explain. Harry grimaced at the reminder while Armand looked interested.

"Cedric?" Emerson asked, scowling slightly as he said the name. Armand snorted and Harry blinked.

"You know him?" Harry inquired curiously and though Emerson continued to scowl he shook his head and turned his glare towards his plate.

"No, it's just; one of my friends back home was named Cedric but he and Emerson never really got along," Armand quickly jumped in to explain. Harry nodded though he found it strange the way Armand always put emphasis on Emerson's name though Emerson seemed completely used to it. Harry couldn't help asking though he saw no resemblance between the two.

"Step-brothers," Emerson corrected when Harry asked if they were brothers. "His father married my mother when we were younger and we've been stuck with each other ever since," Emerson explained with mock frustration and Harry watched as Armand smiled and playfully bumped his own shoulder with Emerson's.

"And I believe that's the first time you called me a clotpole," Armand added, his brow furrowed as he watched his step-brother's face for a reaction. As if on queue, the sour look that had been on Emerson's face melted of and he gave Armand a large grin.

"You deserved it," he said, grin still in place and Armand looked indignant.

"You attacked him! You were looking like a jealous idiot at that point, what was I supposed to think?" Armand defended himself rolling his eyes while dragging a hand through his blonde locks before smoothing them over again.

"That I had a reason for what I was doing!" Emerson shot back immediately, not even needing time to think about it, which made Harry wonder whether or not Armand and Emerson had had this conversation before. A glance over at his friends told Harry that they didn't know what to make of this either.

"Oh just shut up," Armand ended their argument though it was easy to notice the lack of hostility in that statement.

Harry glanced towards his friends once more to find Ron staring at the two new students as if he thought they might be mental, an option that Harry was close to agreeing on but Hermione had stopped pay attention to them and was now trying to catch Nearly Headless Nick's attention, quite possibly so she would be allowed to question him further on the hat's odd song, but was failing miserably.

Harry himself, after some thinking, agreed that there seemed to be something the hat was trying to tell them but, unfortunately, whatever that something was, was lost on him. What was the puzzle that the hat so desperately wanted them to figure out? A better question yet: The hat said that there was only one builder, meaning that the Founders really were just founders of the school but then, who else besides the Founders had the power to create a building like Hogwarts from absolute scratch?

These thoughts were still swirling around in Harry's mind as he watched Dumbledore stand up from his seat, the entire Hall falling silent as they waited for him to speak.

"Well, now that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices," Dumbledore said once it seemed everyone had settled down. "First years ought to know that the Forest in the grounds is out-of-bounds to students – and a few of our older students should know by now, too."

Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged smirks but Harry couldn't help noticing that that Armand and Emerson seemed to be trading secret smiles as well.

"Mr Filch, the caretaker-"

"Yikes," Harry heard Emerson remark and Armand snickered in response.

"- has asked me, for what he tells me is the four-hundred-and-sixty-second time, to remind you all that magic is not permitted in corridors or between classes, nor are a number of other things, all of which can be checked on the extensive list now fastened to Mr Filch's office door."

"Also, as expected, we have a new staff member joining us for this year. We are delighted to introduce Professor Umbridge, our new Defence Against The Dark Arts teacher."

Harry glanced over as he heard Emerson snort into his glass of pumpkin juice, followed shortly by Armand whacking his step-brother's back so hard that Harry almost cringed, though Emerson just coughed out the juice in his lungs and glared at the other boy.

When Harry glanced next to him, it became clear that Hermione was just burning to question them on their reaction but she restrained and stared back to the head table. Harry himself frowned, suddenly growing uncertain about whether or not Armand and Emerson really were the nicest people to be around, considering the doubt they seemed to have in Dumbledore.

Then again, simply looking at the new Defence Against The Dark Arts teacher left a bitter taste in Harry's mouth though he wasn't sure whether it was because of all the pink she seemed to be sporting or because of her positively toad-like feature. It was most probably both, Harry decided before turning his attention back to Dumbledore.

"Try-outs for the house Quidditch teams will take place on the-" Dumbledore broke off, looking enquiringly at Professor Umbridge. It took a moment for Harry to realize why since the height difference between sitting and standing seemed almost exactly the same for the toad-like creature who had indeed stood up in the middle of Dumbledore's speech, clearing her throat with an annoying, "_Hem, hem,_".

Dumbledore looked taken aback for a moment, then he sat down and looked alertly at Professor Umbridge as though he desired nothing more than to listen to her talk. It seemed though that the other members of staff weren't as used to hiding their surprise and Harry watched as Professor Sprout's eyebrows disappeared into her flyaway hair and Professor McGonagall's mouth thinned incredibly.

Harry noted that a lot of the students seemed to be smirking and had to agree, the woman obviously didn't know how things were done at Hogwarts.

"Thank you, Headmaster, for those kind words of welcome," Professor Umbridge began her voice high-pitched, breathy and little-girlish and Harry felt his dislike for her increase greatly. It seemed it was easy not to like her, what with her stupid voice and fluffy pink cardigan.

She gave another throat-clearing cough (_hem, hem_) before continuing.

"Well, it's lovely to be back at Hogwarts, I must say!" She smiled, revealing suspiciously pointy teeth. "And to see such happy little faces smiling back at me." A glance around the room revealed that none of the faces Harry could see looked happy. On the contrary, they all looked rather taken-aback at being addressed as though they were five year olds. It seemed Armand and Emerson had taken an even worse dislike towards the teacher than before since they were both glaring and scowling at her as though there were no tomorrow.

"I am very much looking forward to getting to know you all and I'm sure we'll be very good friends!"

"I'll be friends as long as I don't have to wear that cardigan," Parvati Petal whispered to Lavender Brown, causing both of them to lapse into silent giggles.

From next to Armand, Emerson mumbled, "Wouldn't be friends with you if you paid me," and Armand gave a quiet snort of agreement Harry didn't know what to make of the comments they threw in everywhere.

There was another round of throat-clearing from Professor Umbridge but when she spoke again, some of the breathiness left her voice. She sounded much more business-like and now her words had a dull, learned-by-heart sound to them.

"The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of vital importance. The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction. The ancient skills unique to the wizarding community by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching."

Professor Umbridge paused here and made a little bow to her fellow staff members, none of whom bowed back to her. Professor McGonagall's dark brows had contracted so that she looked positively hawk-like, and Harry distinctly saw her exchange a significant glance with Professor Sprout as Umbridge gave another little "_hem, hem_" and went on with her speech.

"Every headmaster and headmistress of Hogwarts has brought something new to the weighty task of governing this historic school, and that is as it should be, for without progress there will be stagnation and decay. Then again, progress for progress's sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions often require no tinkering. A balance, then, between old and new, between permanence and change, between tradition and innovation..."

Harry found his attentiveness ebbing, as though his brain was slipping in and out of tune. The quiet that always filled the hall when Dumbledore was speaking was breaking up as students put their heads together, whispering and giggling. Over on the Ravenclaw table Cho was chatting animatedly with her friends.

A few seats along from Cho, Luna Lovegood had got out the Quibbler again. Meanwhile, at the Hufflepuff table Ernie Macmillan was one of the few still staring at Professor Umbridge, but he was glassy-eyed and Harry was sure he was only pretending to listen in an attempt to live up to the new prefect's badge gleaming on his chest.

Professor Umbridge did not seem to notice the restlessness of her audience. Harry had the impression that a full-scale riot could have broken out under her nose and she would have ploughed on with her speech. The teachers, however, were still listening very attentively, and Hermione seemed to be drinking in every word Umbridge spoke, though, judging by her expression, they were not at all to her taste.

To Harry's utmost surprise, he found both of the new students listening to Umbridge's speech with scrutinizing looks on their faces, apparently not like what they were hearing either. Frowning in confusion, Harry tried his best to tune back into what the toad was say.

"...because some changes will be for the better, while others will come, in the fullness of time, to be recognized as errors of judgement. Meanwhile, some old habits will be retained, and rightly so, whereas others, outworn, must be abandoned. Let us move forward, then, into a new era of openness, effectiveness and accountability, intent on preserving what ought to be preserved, perfect what needs to be perfected, and pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited."

She sat down. Dumbledore clapped. The staff followed his lead, though Harry noticed that several of them brought their hands together only once or twice before stopping. A few students joined in, but most had been taken unawares by the end of the speech, not having listened to more than a few words of it, and before they could start applauding properly, Dumbledore had stood up again.

"Thank you very much, Professor Umridge, that was most illuminating," he said, bowing to her. "Now, as I was saying, Quidditch try-outs will be held..."

"Yes, it certainly was illuminating," said Hermione in a low voice.

"You're not telling me you enjoyed it?" Ron said quietly, turning a glazed face towards Hermione. "That's about the dullest speech I've ever heard and I grew up with Percy,"

"I said illuminating, not enjoyable," said Hermione. "It explained a lot."

"Did it?" said Harry in surprise. "Sounded like a load of waffle to me."

"There was some important stuff hiding in the waffle," said Hermione grimly.

"Was there?" said Ron blankly.

"How about: "Progress for progress's sake must be discouraged"? How about: "Pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited"?

"Well, what does that mean?" said Ron impatiently.

"It means the Ministry's going to be controlling Hogwarts in whatever way they see fit," snapped Armand, drawing Harry, Hermione and Ron's surprised gazes. Armand really didn't seem like the type of person to know about such things. Emerson nodded in agreement and Ron groaned.

"Great, now we have three Hermione's in Gryffindor, having one was bad enough," he complained, receiving a smack across the back of his head for his troubles.

Armand and Emerson gave Hermione curious looks but didn't say anything.

"So, where did you study before this?" Hermione questioned, looking interested as always when school and learning was involved.

"Actually, we taught ourselves. Our father didn't quite agree with the school curriculum so we couldn't go there and our father was working most of the time-" Harry noted that Armand grimaced at the mention of this, but he didn't say anything "-so we ended up teaching ourselves. It was a slow start sure but it was fun and we learned a couple of spells that you're normally taught in your sixth and seventh year," Emerson explained with another one of his goofy grins.

"I didn't think you could decline going to school," Harry considered and Hermione shook her head.

"You can but people rarely do, it's too much of an effort and the fees for self-study are extremely high since the Ministry tries to discourage it," Hermione explained and Harry blinked. Did that mean Armand and Emerson came from a rich family and, if so where they purebloods?

Harry pushed the thought aside since he knew that it didn't really matter but he couldn't help being curious.

The announcements soon finished and the five students headed up to the dormitories, Armand and Emerson peering at everything rather curiously. They met Neville at the portrait of the Fat Lady and Harry couldn't have been more relieved since he hadn't bothered to ask for the password and thanks to Neville's birthday present, he'd actually been able to remember it.

They entered and Harry received a rather large surprise when Armand and Emerson followed him and Ron to their dorm-room, explaining that they would be sharing a room since they'd refused to sleep in separate rooms and Harry's room was the only one that didn't already have six beds in it without their beds added.

Well, Harry decided a while later as he lay staring up at the canopy of his bed, it was sure to be an interesting year.

**IMPORTANT:**

**There you have it, sorry the arrival at Hogwarts took up so many chapters but I felt it was necessary and at least the next chapter's probably going to be really long since it's going to be both the DADA class and the detention all in one. Also, for those of who are wondering, since Harry never lay claim to Voldemort trying to rise again, Umbridge never saw reason to send the Dementors to Little Wings so he never had the Hearing and never met her before. It also means that Seamus doesn't have a reason to go against Harry. Lastly, though the Order is wary of Voldemort rising again, they are slightly slow in setting anything into action, as such Hagrid hasn't gone off to meet with the giants yet though he will do so later on in the story. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it and, please review. **


	5. Chapter 5

**I finally got the chance to finish this chapter so that I could post it. I'm so glad, honestly, considering that I've been so desperate for people to update the stories that I'VE followed and it didn't happen, I decided to set an example and publish a new chapter of my own story. I was so eager to write this chapter and so on but I didn't really have time until now and wrote most of this chapter in one night, which I consider to be pretty good though I suppose that I have to take in account that some of this was copied and pasted. Anyway, either way, I hope it's still enjoyable. On with the show.**

Chapter Five: Arthur

Bright light suddenly filtered through Arthur's eyelids, causing Arthur to groan from the rude awakening. Even worse was the voice that quickly followed said awakening.

"Let's have you, lazy daisy!" rang out in the room, sounding much to cheerful for so early in the morning, the groans that drifted through the room informing Arthur that he wasn't the only one who thought so. Frrowning, Arthur tried desperately to bury further into his pillow in an attempt to escape Merlin's cheerful morning greetings but failed as his covers were ripped away from him, leaving him feeling irritated as he ignored the small part of his brain that jumped back to those many years ago when Merlin had still been his servant. True, Merlin still had a tendency to wake him up this way but with the red dormitory beds and the setting, it was quite close to deja vu.

Reaching for his nearest shoe, Arthur flung it in Merlin's direction and the warlock ducked good-naturedly before wandering back towards his own bed, dumping the covers away from Arthur for good measure.

"Is he always like this?" one of the other boys – Dean, Arthur's mind supplied for him – questioned, voice still thick with sleep.

Arthur simply grumbled in reply before looking up and around the room, pleased to note that none of his new roommates seemed to be morning people. Finally, Arthur willed himself to roll of the bed and stood slowly stretching out languidly and smirking when he noticed some of the boys staring at him in obvious envy. There was something to be said for being forced through tough sessions of sword practice when he'd been between the ages of twelve and eighteen.

"Prat," Merlin accused as he changed into his trousers and Arthur couldn't help grinning at him teasingly. Contrary to Arthur, Merlin was skin and bones, his ribs clearly visible against his pale skin, making Arthur grimace slightly. The only thing he could really appreciate about the spell that Merlin used for their de-aging, was the fact that it reverted them to how they'd actually been during the necessary age, meaning that the scars they'd required over the many years, disappeared with their real age.

"That's hardly fair Emerson, it's clear that I deserve the praise," Arthur mocked, receiving an eye roll in return while the other occupants in the room looked unsure. Yes, they obviously needed some time to get used to his and Merlin's constant banter.

* * *

"History of Magic, double Potions, Divination and double Defence Against the Dark Arts… Binns, Snape, Trelawney and that Umbridge woman all in one day! I wish Fred and George'd hurry up and get those Skiving Snackboxes sorted…" Ron groaned, later that morning as he studied his schedule with obvious horror.

Arthur exchanged looks with Merlin, glad that they didn't have Divinations as an elective, instead they'd both opted for Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Ruin.

"Do mine ears deceive me?" a voice questioned and Arthur looked over to find two identical looking boys approaching the table before they both squeezed in next to Harry. Upon further examination it became clear that the twins were most probably related to Ron.

"Hogwarts prefects surely don't wish to skive off lessons?" the twin who hadn't spoken yet, continued for his brother.

"Look what we've got today," said Ron grumpily, shoving his timetable under the first twin's nose. "That's the worst Monday I've ever seen."

"Fair point, little bro," the first twin conceded, scanning the column. "You can have a bit of Nosebleed Nougat cheap if you like."

Arthur blinked, what on earth was the twin on about?

"Why's it cheap?" Ron asked suspiciously.

"Because you'll keep bleeding till you shrivel up, we haven't got an antidote yet," the second twin explained, helping himself to a kipper. Arthur came to a sudden understanding and shared a quick grin with Merlin, thinking of the knights and what they sometimes did to avoid their duties.

"Blimey, George, are these two new faces?" the first twin questioned the second twin who was apparently named Goerge.

"I do believe they are, Fred," George agreed and Arthur grinned at their antics.

"And what might your names be?" the first twin, now introduced as Fred, asked curiously.

Arthur was just about to introduce himself when an offending hand clamped itself over his mouth while the other came up to still his head in case he tried to break free, which he didn't do for fear of looking like an idiot.

"Oh no you don't," Merlin chirped before turning his attention back to the twins. "I'm Emerson and his royal highness over here's Armand," Merlin told them grinning and Arthur frowned, his hand lowering before he deliver a sharp poke in Merlin's ribs that had his husband releasing him immediately, an indignant cry escaping his lips.

Finally freed, Arthur turned to scowl at Merlin and the twins chuckled before speaking again.

"Good to meet you mates. Let us know if you need help finding anything," they offered and Arthur immediately knew to be wary of them, they looked too much like Gwaine did before he started a fight in the tavern.

"Speaking of _helping_, you can't advertise for testers on the Gryffindor noticeboard," Hermione accused, eyeing the twins beadily.

"Says who?" George asked, astonished.

"Says me," said Hermione. "And Ron."

Ron however, didn't seem to thrilled by this declaration and muttered for Hermione to leave him out of it only to receive a glare for his troubles.

"You'll be singing a different tune soon enough, Hermione," said Fred, thickly buttering a crumpet. "You're starting your fifth year, you'll be begging us for a Snackbox before long."

"And why would starting fifth year mean I want a Skiving Snackbox?" asked Hermione.

"Fifth year's OWL year," George stated and Merlin groaned, causing Arthur to look amused while the twins exclaimed, "Exactly," as if Merlin's reaction explained everything. And it did, mostly.

"Anyhow, now that we've delivered our news of the day, we best be heading off," George declared sadly as the twins rose out of their seats.

"Now hold on just a moment, I'm not done with you yet," Hermione exclaimed rather angrily but the twins were already halfway down the aisle and out the door before the prefect could make an attempt to chase after them.

"D'you recon it's true, this year's going to be really rough? Because of the exams?" Harry questioned as he poked at his food, obviously nervous after what had just been said.

"Oh yeah," Ron said, looking thoughtful. "Bound to be isn't it? OWLs are really important, affect the jobs you apply for and everything. We get career advice, too, later this year, Bill told me. So you can choose what NEWTs you want to do next year."

"D'you know what you want to do after Hogwarts?" Harry asked the others as they left the Great Hall and set off towards their History of Magic classroom.

"Not really" Ron admitted but hesitated, as if wanting to add something. "Except…well…"

"What?" Harry urged him, curious.

"Well it'd be cool to be an Auror," Ron remarked off-handily.

"Yeah, it would," Harry said fervently and Arthur couldn't help feeling amused by it all. At the age of one thousand three hundred Arthur had already figured out the various things he was interested in and done it all, but his favourite pastime remained to be politics, something that Merlin continued to fail to understand.

"But they're, like, the elite," Ron elaborated, awe clear in his voice. "You've got to be really good. What about you, Hermione?"

"I don't know," she said. "I think I'd like to do something really worthwhile."

"An Auror's worthwhile!" said Harry and Arthur grinned, now thoroughly entertained.

"And what about you two?" Hermione asked, ignoring Harry's obviously indignant cry and Ron's offended look as she stared at Arthur and Merlin curiously.

"Oh, I don't know, I'd probably end up being an Auror as well," Arthur told them carelessly, not missing the knowing grin Merlin threw him, the idiot knew perfectly well that they'd never be able to draw that much attention to themselves, otherwise Arthur would've ended up Minister of Magic centuries ago.

"I thought it might be nice to try and create some new spells… it might be fun," Merlin piped up from Arthur's side and Arthur rolled his eyes, leave it to Merlin to say something like that. Unfortunately, Arthur's playfulness dissipated slightly as he caught the curious looks the trio was sending their way and jabbed Merlin in the ribs in warning.

* * *

The rest of the day went rather well, until Defence Against the Dark Arts.

History of Magic was no less boring than it had been the first time Arthur's life started _becoming_ history. Even worse, the professor, Professor Binns had been a teacher the last time he and Merlin visited Hogwart with the only difference being that he'd been alive back then. Miraculously, it seemed that Hermione Granger somehow still found it interesting while Merlin, Harry and Ron had doze off during the lesson and to his greatest horror, Arthur had been hard-pressed to follow their example, but had managed to remain respectful awake till the end.

After that, it had been double Potions with a greasy haired man, named Professor Snape that Arthur immediately decided he wanted nothing to do with. The man sauntered into his classroom and levelled both Arthur and Merlin with inspecting gazes and Arthur could clearly make out the calculating look that appeared in the Professor's eyes when neither he nor Merlin flinched away from his glare.

It seemed he took their lack of fear personally since he proceeded to make the rest of the class as miserable as possible for them. He'd probably been eager to fault them on their Drought of Peace potions as well but because of Merlin's teachings it had been damn near impossible and the professor had instead turned his rage on Harry.

Lastly before Defence, had been Ancient Ruins with Hermione as company and though it had been easy, it had been a challenge to act as if deciphering ruins wasn't second nature to him. But Arthur knew his cool air and Merlin's refusal to even raise a hand in class, had ended up fooling everyone.

When they entered the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom they found Professor Umbridge already seated at the teacher's desk, wearing the fluffy pink cardigan of the night before as if she didn't have anything else to wear and peering at the class as if they were five year old brats that she was forced to be nice too. Arthur's hatred for her grew even more, though it seemed almost impossible.

The class was quiet as it entered the room; Professor Umbridge was, as yet, an unknown quantity and nobody knew how strict a disciplinarian she was likely to be.

"Well, good afternoon!" she said, when finally the whole class had sat down.

A few people mumbled 'good afternoon' in reply.

"Tut, tut," said Professor Umbridge. "That won't do, now, will it? I should like you, please, to reply "Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge". One more time, please. Good afternoon, class!"

"Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge," they chanted back at her.

"There, now," said Professor Umbridge sweetly. "That wasn't too difficult, was it? Wands away and quills out, please."

Many of the class exchanged gloomy looks, knowing as well as anyone that order 'wands away' signalled for a dull lesson.

Slipping his wand into his pocket, Arthur quickly drew out an ink pot, quill and a parchment. Professor Umbridge opened her handbag, extracted her own wand, and tapped the blackboard sharply with it; words appeared on the board at once: Defence Against the Dark Arts A Return to Basic Principles.

Arthur stifled a groan and exchanged a weary look with Merlin.

"Well now, your teaching in this subject has been rather disrupted and fragmented, hasn't it?" stated Professor Umbridge, turning to face the class with her hands clasped neatly in front of her. "The constant changing of teachers, many of whom do not seem to have followed any Ministry‐approved curriculum, has unfortunately resulted in your being far below the standard we would expect to see in your OWL year."

"You will be pleased to know, however, that these problems are now to be rectified. We will be following a carefully structured, theory‐centred, Ministry‐approved course of defensive magic this year. Copy down the following, please."

She rapped the blackboard again; the first message vanished and was replaced by the 'Course Aims'.

. Understanding the principles underlying defensive magic.

. Learning to recognise situations in which defensive magic can legally be used.

. Placing the use of defensive magic in a context for practical use.

For a couple of minutes the room was full of the sound of scratching quills on parchment. When everyone had copied down Professor Umbridge's three course aims she asked, "Has everybody got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?"

_Unfortunately yeah, _Arthur thought grimly as he pulled the book out and opened it to the first page, wearily studying to 'Course Aims' that clearly said nothing about stepping outside of Theory. Arthur was rather keen to object to this though he knew he could for fear of drawing to much attention.

There was a dull murmur of assent throughout the class to Umbridge's question.

"I think we'll try that again," said Professor Umbridge. "When I ask you a question, I should like you to reply, 'Yes, Professor Umbridge', or 'No, Professor Umbridge'. So: has everyone got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?"

"Yes, Professor Umbridge," rang through the room, mostly said through gritted teeth.

"Good," said Professor Umbridge. "I should like you to turn to page five and read 'Chapter One, Basics for Beginners'. There will be no need to talk."

Professor Umbridge left the blackboard and settled herself in the chair behind the teacher's desk, observing them all closely with those beady suspicious eyes of hers. Arthur turned to page five of his copy of Defensive Magical Theory and started to read, resigned to refreshing his mind. It quickly became clear that the book wasn't one of the most interesting ones out there.

Several silent minutes passed as everyone read, or pretended to, at least. Next to him, Harry was staring blankly at his book while Ron was absent‐mindedly turning his quill over and over in his fingers, staring at the same spot on the page. Hermione on the other hand had not even opened her copy of Defensive Magical Theory. She was staring fixedly at Professor Umbridge with her hand in the air.

Arthur hid a smile behind his hand as he covertly watched Umbridge, waiting for her to acknowledge Hermione's existence. Arthur, stared curiously at Hermione as she gave a faint shake of her head, it seemed either Harry or Ron had given her a questioning glance. Still, instead of answering whatever question her friends seemed to have for her, she continued to stare at Professor Umbridge, who was looking just as resolutely in another direction.

After several more minutes had passed, however, Harry was not the only one watching Hermione and the chapter they'd been instructed to read was obviously forgotten. More and more people were choosing to watch Hermione's mute attempt to catch Professor Umbridge's eye rather than struggle on with 'Basics for Beginners'.

When more than half the class were staring at Hermione rather than at their books, Professor Umbridge seemed to decide that she could ignore the situation no longer.

"Did you want to ask something about the chapter, dear?" she asked Hermione, as though she had only just noticed her.

"Not about the chapter, no," said Hermione.

"Well, we're reading that just now," said Professor Umbridge, showing her small pointed teeth. "If you have other queries we can deal with them at the end of class."

"I've got a query about your course aims," Hermione ignored Professor Umbridge's wishes and rushed on.

Professor Umbridge raised her eyebrows.

"And your name is?"

"Hermione Granger," said Hermione.

"Well, Miss Granger, I think the course aims are perfectly clear if you read them through carefully," said Professor Umbridge in a voice of determined sweetness.

"Well, I don't," said Hermione bluntly. "There's nothing written up there about using defensive spells." Her exclamation caused Arthur to smile, thank goodness there was someone bright enough in the class to figure that out.

There was a short silence in which many members of the class turned their heads to frown at the three course aims still written on the blackboard.

"Using defensive spells?" Professor Umbridge repeated with a little laugh. "Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to use a defensive spell, Miss Granger. You surely aren't expecting to be attacked during class?"

"We're not going to use magic?" Ron exclaimed loudly, joining in on the conversation.

"Students raise their hands when they wish to speak in my class, Mr.‐?"

"Weasley," said Ron, thrusting his hand into the air.

Professor Umbridge, smiling still more widely, turned her back on him. Harry and Hermione immediately raised their hands too. Professor Umbridge's beady eyes lingered on Harry for a moment as recognition flitted across her face, before she addressed Hermione.

"Yes, Miss Granger? You wanted to ask something else?"

"Yes," said Hermione. "Surely the whole point of Defence Against the Dark Arts is to practise defensive spells?"

"Are you a Ministry‐trained educational expert, Miss Granger?" asked Professor Umbridge, in her falsely sweet voice that was starting to grate horribly on Arthur's nerves.

"'No, but ‐"

"Well then, I'm afraid you are not qualified to decide what the 'whole point' of any class is. Wizards much older and cleverer than you have devised our new programme of study."

"But shouldn't the Ministry be worried about our abilities to defend ourselves? I trust the Ministry to protect me but even they can't be responsible for my safety all of the time. Theory will do very little for us in a battle and there's always the possibility of a dark wizard attacking a random citizen in an effort to unsettle the public," as Arthur finished his statement, a terrible silence seemed to bare down on the room and Arthur watched with fascination as Umbridge turned an intriguing shade of red that seemed even worse than her cardigan.

"Well, how nice of you to enlighten us on your views of the world. Forgive me, but I don't believe I caught your name," Umbridge offered, her voice entirely too girlish and demeaning for Arthur's liking.

"Armand Pendragon," Arthur told her rather reluctantly. That seemed to make her pause, though for what reason, Arthur wasn't too sure. But she quickly recovered and carried on.

"Well Mr Pendragon, you, like everyone else, will remember to raise your hand in the future and though one is entitled to their own opinion, I will thank you to stay away from subjects you know nothing of," Umbridge told him, smile still in place.

Arthur felt his composure slip with no desire to recover it.

"This is ridiculous, the Ministry's -"

"Detention Mr Pendragon!" Umbridge interrupted Arthur's attempt to rant, the red returning to her slightly paled cheeks in her rage.

"But it's illogical," Arthur objected, shooting up out of his seat.

"Should I make that a week?" Umbridge warned, causing Arthur to pause as he managed to regain some control over his temper.

Arthur gave unconscious glance around the classroom, regret surging up inside him as his eyes landed on a fuming Merlin. Crap…there'd be hell to pay once they were back in the Gryffindor common room. He reluctantly sat back down, glaring at Umbridge all the way.

"Good. Tomorrow evening. Five o'clock. My office. The Ministry of Magic guarantees that you are not in danger from any Dark wizard. If you are still worried, by all means come and see me outside class hours. And now, you will kindly continue your reading. Page five, 'Basics for Beginners'."

Professor Umbridge sat down behind her desk.

Arthur did no such thing and spent the remainder of the class glaring at her until Umbridge's nerve's seemed to seize up and she demanded that he had nothing to look at and that he'd better start working if he didn't want to end up with even more detention. Feeling slightly satisfied and smug, Arthur had obliged and looked down at his books but not before his insides decided to freezeover at the dark "You‐Are-Taking-This-Too-Lightly-And-It-Will-Cause-The-End-Of-The-World look Merlin was sending him.

Right then…

**Well, there you have it, please tell me what you thought of it. Next chapter should be up in two to three weeks unfortunately but I'm planning on making it the detention and Merlin's reaction to Arthur's injured hand because of the Blood Quills. Also, in your reviews could you please let me know what you think of Arthur and Merlin's characters in this chapter? Thanks.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey, sorry it took so long but I was struggling with perfecting this chapter, still I hope it's satisfactory. **

**To GalynSolo, I hope Harry's reaction to Arthur's outburst makes you happy.**

**To Dark Knight Warrior no Arthur and Merlin had the normal appearance of fifteen-year-olds while also being in fifth grade.**

**Anyway, there are a lot of people looking forward to this chapter so I hope it's okay, if not you can tell me where it's lacking and I'll personally republish the chapter with what you want if I feel what you want is reasonable. Now I hope you enjoy.**

Chapter Six: Harry

Harry stared back at Professor Umbridge as the Professor's eyes lingered on him. Recognition seemed to flit across her face for an instant before she refocused her attention on Hermione.

Harry didn't know whether to feel glad or annoyed by this.

"Yes, Miss Granger? You wanted to ask something else?"

"Yes," said Hermione. "Surely the whole point of Defense Against the Dark Arts is to practice defensive spells?"

Harry nodded along since that seemed like a reasonable and logical conclusion to make.

"Are you a Ministry-trained educational expert, Miss Granger?" asked Professor Umbridge, her voice sickly-sweet and, looking over at his suddenly uncertain friend, Harry felt anger starting to well up inside of him.

"No, but-"

"Well then, I'm afraid you are not qualified to decide what the 'whole point' of any class is. Wizards much older and cleverer than you have devised our new program of study."

Harry desperately wanted to point out that they clearly couldn't have been that smart if they decided to remove the practical part of Defense from the syllabus but someone else spoke up before he could.

"But shouldn't the Ministry be worried about our abilities to defend ourselves? I trust the Ministry to protect me but even they can't be responsible for my safety all of the time. Theory will do very little for us in a battle and there's always the possibility of a Dark wizard attacking a random citizen in an effort to unsettle the public," Armand stated, causing an uneasy silence to fall across the room as everyone considered what had just been said. Harry nodded fervently in agreement of Armand's statement, at the same time watching as Umbridge grew red in the face.

She looked quite like a tomato, the form of her oddly-shaped head helping the look along.

"Well, how nice of you to enlighten us on your views of the world. Forgive me but I don't believe I caught your name," Umbridge simpered, clearly trying her best to stare Armand down even with the large disadvantage her height gave her. Were it any other time, Harry probably would've laughed.

"Armand Pendragon," Armand seemed reluctant to admit and Harry frowned slightly as he looked over at Ron who suddenly seemed to be staring at Armand in awe.

"Well Mr. Pendragon, you, like everyone else, will remember to raise your hand in the future and though one is entitled to their own opinion, I will thank you to stay away from subjects you know nothing of," Umbridge told him though it was clear that the warning had been meant for the class as a whole.

Unfortunately it seemed to be the wrong thing to say since Armand was quick to object again.

"This is ridiculous, the Ministry's-"

"Detention Mr. Pendragon!" Umbridge screeched, her face turning an even darker shade of red though Harry hadn't previously thought it possible.

"But it's illogical," Armand insisted, his chair skidding back slightly as he shot out of his seat causing Harry to jump from the noise and feeling quite silly because of it.

"Should I make that a week?" Umbridge threatened, causing Armand to hesitate.

Taking Armand's silence as obedience, she spoke again. "Good. Tomorrow evening. Five o'clock. My office." Armand glared at Umbridge before slowly sinking back into his seat, though Harry suspected that he didn't stop glaring. "The Ministry of Magic guarantees that you are not in danger from any Dark wizard. If you are still worried, by all means come and see me outside class hours-" Harry doubted that she be willing to hear Armand or any of them out, even if they tried to talk to her about it. "- continue your reading. Page five, Basics for Beginners," Umbridge ordered before sitting back down.

Shooting Umbridge one last disbelieving look, Harry turned his gaze down, disappointed to realize that the book hadn't gotten any more interesting while the argument with Umbridge had taken place. Like before, the book failed to capture Harry's attention and he'd almost drifted off completely when Umbridge's shrieking voice rang around the room again.

"Eyes on your book Mr. Pendragon!" she demanded and Harry looked up in time to see Armand lower his head, apparently having been staring at Umbridge for the past few minutes.

Hiding a victorious smirk in his hand, Harry couldn't help feeling satisfied that someone had the ability to irk Umbridge so.

As Harry left the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, he couldn't help feeling a mixture of exhaustion and unease. Still, he reasoned he had a right to feel the way that he did considering how terrible their first lesson of the year had gone and the way Umbridge had continued to eye him throughout the entire period.

The only luck so far was the fact that Umbridge hadn't seen fit to yell at them again during the class, and the double period had passed in silence.

It seemed however, that the argument Armand had, had with Umbridge succeeded angering his brother and Emerson had wasted no time in dragging Armand into the nearest abandoned classroom, slamming the door shut behind him as he went.

"Whada yah recon that's all about?" Ron questioned, glancing back at the closed door as the three of them started making their way towards the Gryffindor common room.

"Dunno," Harry shrugged.

"Honestly you two, he's obviously upset with Armand for speaking up like that," Hermione mused, causing Ron to look baffled.

"What?! But that was bloody brilliant! Did you see her face?" Ron exclaimed, his voice a mixture of disbelief, glee and awe as he threw his hands in the air for emphasis.

Harry grinned in agreement, it had been quite brilliant and he hadn't even needed to draw attention towards himself for the show to happen, which in itself was quite the miracle.

"You shouldn't be encouraged by it," Hermione lectured, causing Ron to roll his eyes in an exaggerated manner. "Though…" Hermione trailed off, seeming to consider something and Harry and Ron exchanged wide-eyed looks at the possibility of their friend approving of Armand's rudeness towards a teacher.

"Is the great Hermione Granger actually approving of talking back to a teacher?" Ron feigned disbelief and Harry's grin widened as Hermione glared at Ron.

"You two really don't recognize a good diplomatic argument when you hear one, do you?" Hermione accused, exasperated.

"Um, no?" Ron's answer sounded more like a question while Harry simply shook his head, feeling confused.

"Boys," was all she said before approaching the portrait to the common room and murmuring the password.

"What's she on about?" Ron demanded and Harry could only shrug before following his friend inside.

* * *

"Hi, Armand!" Padma and Pavati Petal chorused, exiting the common room just as Harry and the others entered it.

Armand looked rather smug and Emerson grinned as they stared over their shoulders at the retreating twins' backs.

The two brothers had entered the common room later the previous afternoon, grinning and joking around as if Emerson's anger over what happened in Defense, had never existed in the first place.

Unfortunately, it seemed Emerson and Armand weren't the only ones admiring the Patil twins and Harry had to jab Ron in the ribs to prevent his friend from tripping into the common room in all his drooling glory.

"Oh great, it's started," Emerson announced, sounding more amused than annoyed as all of them sat down at a group of tables where they could do their homework.

Harry and Ron gave him questioning looks and Emerson quickly elaborated on his statement. "Armand's always been a magnet for trouble but his rather gifted with attracting girls' attention as well. Not that the two don't usually go together," Emerson explained while extracting his potions homework from his bag.

Armand rolled his eyes and ruffled Emerson's hair before responding while Emerson simply continued to grin.

"Can't complement me without insulting me first, can you, Emerson?" Armand accused, his tone playful and resigned at the same time.

"Nah, your head would get too big for your crown," Emerson agreed, pulling a face before ducking away from the hand that tried to swat at him.

Harry couldn't help glancing at Ron as he watched the two brothers interacting, trying to guess his friend's thoughts on the matter.

Ron however, seemed to be at as much of a loss as Harry himself and the four Gryffindors soon descended into silence as they worked.

It was around four-thirty that Hermione stumbled into the common room, making a b-line for Harry and Ron's table.

"Something wrong?" Harry questioned, noticing how his friend sat down with a heavy sigh.

"Lavender and the twins are at it again," she admitted, clearly exhausted. At Harry's curious look, she shot a pointed glance towards Armand, and Harry quickly covered up his laughter with a cough as Emerson's earlier words were confirmed.

Hermione however, didn't seem to notice and was instead staring at Armand rather intently.

"Don't you have detention with Umbridge this afternoon?" she asked and Armand looked up in surprise upon realizing that she was talking to him.

Frowning, Armand looked towards the clock on the wall before cursing out loud and shooting his homework a withering glare. Still grumbling he stuffed the work in his bag and rose from his chair.

"I'll see you later," Armand announced, receiving a nod of acknowledgement from Emerson as he left the tower, heading for his detention with Umbridge.

* * *

"Recon they're done yet?" Ron questioned an hour later, looking over at Emerson who hadn't stopped fidgeting since minutes after his brother's departure.

"Let's hope," he agreed and Harry frowned at his reaction but none the less stood up, shooting Ron a, "we should really go with him," look. Sighing in resignation, Ron stood as well and the three boys headed towards the Defence classroom once more, leaving Hermione to finish the work she so insisted on completing.

"So, how long have you and Armand been brothers?" Harry asked, in an effort to break the slightly strained silence that had developed between the three of them as they'd been walking.

"Ten years, though we didn't quite get along at the beginning," Emerson explained causing Harry to exchange a disbelieving look with Ron that made Emerson laugh. "I know, it doesn't seem like it now, but we hated each other at the beginning. I though he was arrogant and spoiled and he thought I was stupid and disrespectful," Emerson explained and laughed again upon noticing Harry's skeptical expression. "Anyway, we managed to settle our differences rather quickly and everything else just went from there," Emerson shrugged but his relaxed posture quickly stiffened once more as he frowned and looked ahead.

Blinking in confusion Harry followed Emerson's gaze just as Armand Pendragon entered the corridor they were currently in.

"Emerson? What are you doing here?" Armand frowned as he reached them, sounding disapproving and aloof.

"You alright?" Emerson asked, seemingly unaffected by his brother's indifference.  
"Yes. Why….?" Armand answered with a raised eyebrow and, sharing a quick look with Ron, Harry slowly retreated, just enough to allow the two brothers some space. Instead of accepting this, Emerson narrowed his eyes at his brother and, with speed Harry wouldn't have guessed him to possess, the black haired boy snatched Armand's right hand from where it had been resting behind his back.

There was a slight pause as Emerson examined the back of Armand's hand before hissing in a manner quite akin to that of a snake. Harry was still recovering from the shock of the sound when Emerson took off down the hall, Armand seemingly frozen in place.

"Crap, I knew he'd react this way. Emerson!" Armand exclaimed though he appeared to be rooted to the spot, unable to chase after his brother. "Well, go after him will you, it appears I'm stuck," Armand commanded, prompting both Ron and Harry to rush after Emerson without thought, whether from curiosity or because of how commanding Armand had sounded when ordering them to do so, Harry would never know.

Unfortunately Emerson had already arrived at Umbridge's office when Harry and the Ron got there and instead the two found themselves kneeling outside the door.

"What did you do to him?" Emerson demanded as the two teenagers peered into Umbridge's office through the small gap provided by the slightly ajar door.

"Pardon?" Umbridge's voice was as _polite _as ever and Harry just managed to catch her batting her eyes at Emerson in a display of innocence, though Harry suspected that she truly had no idea why Emerson had burst into her office, well not yet anyway.

"My brother, he just served detention with you," Emerson stated, crossing his arms and probably glaring at Umbridge though with Emerson's back to them, Harry couldn't be sure.

"Ah yes, dear Mr. Pendragon," simpered Umbridge, her attitude now unchanged from how it had been in class two days ago. "Well as I've said before, disrespect is not tolerated in my classroom and I will punish any who do not follow my rules." Umbridge continued, rearranging some papers on her desk as if she was simply looking for something to do.

Emerson gave a derisive laugh.

"How? By forcing them to use Blood Quills while writing lines?" Emerson hissed leaning forward onto the table in a probably effort to appear larger and though it didn't really work from where Harry was crouching, Emerson's words seemed to have desired effect, though Harry had no idea why.

Harry shared a baffled expression with Ron as they tried to decipher the meaning of Emerson's words while at the same time watched Umbridge paled considerably, though she managed to keep the rest of her expression blank.

"Forgive me but are you suggesting that I used illegal utensils to punish my students. I can assure you that is not the case." Umbridge said with a thin-lipped smile and a girlish giggle added on.

"Oh, that's my mistake then?" Emerson said as one of the drawers in Umbridge's office opened and a box full of black quills rose out of the drawer. Within seconds, Umbridge's face transformed into that of a gapping fish.

"I know The Ministry put you up to this and I know you're here because Fudge thinks Albus Dumbledore is trying to overthrow him, but the students at this school have absolutely nothing to do with it, you might as well keep your claws off of them," Emerson's voice was suspiciously light as he said this but Umbridge didn't seem to interpret this as a warning.

"How dare you, Cornelius Fudge is a wonderful Minister of Magic and anyone who wants to oppose him deserve to be unseated, whether from a position in the Ministry or a position as the Headmaster of a school but I will not tolerate being accused and told what to do by a student who, until this year, did not even have any formal education. Now if you say one more word about Minister Fudge or the way I decide to run my classes, I'm afraid I will have to Oblivate you," Umbridge threatened, her voice still as sickly sweet as ever and Harry felt anger rise up inside of him while Ron stiffened next to him; how dare she threaten Emerson with having his memory erased simply because he knew of her illegal practices though, then again, it was probably to be expected, the toad was clearly vile.

However, Harry's thoughts were interrupted when Emerson spoke up once more.

"Your fury might spread like a disease but I do not care for your threats. Know that I will do everything in my power to stop you from succeeding in ridding this school of Dumbledore. I know I may not look like much but I promise you, if I find out you've harmed anyone else especially my brother, there will not be a place in this world or a spell in your mind that will save you," Emerson said, his voice fierce yet calm and his posture firm. Harry couldn't help feeling intimidated by it even as he felt surprised that Emerson could be so scary. Then, without warning, the box containing what Harry assumed to be the Blood Quills, suddenly burst into flames, causing Harry's heart beat to speed up from the shock.

"Sorry for disturbing you," Emerson said rather darkly and Harry and Ron exchanged quick looks before hurrying away from the door, knowing it would not do for them to be found eavesdropping outside the door. The door to Umbridge's office opened soon after and Emerson strode out, his heated gaze falling upon Armand almost immediately. "I can't believe you let her do that to you!" he exclaimed as soon as he drawn Armand into one of the alcoves away from Umbridge's office, seeming to completely ignore both Ron and Harry's presence as he went. It took Harry a few seconds to realize that he and Ron had unwittingly stepped into a dark corner of the corridor in their haste to get away, though he now found himself unwilling to reveal their presence to the two arguing teens.

"What was I supposed to do, refuse to write with the thing?" Armand demanded back.

"You could've" Emerson insisted, brows furrowed in what appeared to be disapproval.

"I thought you were the one who said we had to blend in, that father would skin us alive if we got kicked out of here!" Armand exclaimed, placing his hands on his hips as he glared at his brother. The frown that had been on Emerson's face since existing Umbridge's office deepened even further before his eyes seemed to clear with understand.

"Fine, but we're not finished discussing this," he vowed before leading the way out of the alcove and down the hall, yanking Armand along behind him.

Harry looked over at Ron as he tried to piece the two brothers' conversation together, desperate to make sense of what had just occurred.

"Think we should tell Hermione?" Ron asked after a few minutes of silence. Harry bit his lip in thought before nodding in agreement.

"Yeah, let's," he mumbled and the two of them stood up from their hiding spot and hurried after the two other boys.

**Well, there you have it, yet another chapter though you have no idea how guilty I felt for how long it took to post this chapter and my internet was funny today so I was actually sure I wouldn't be able to publish this chapter even if I finished it today, luckily the internet fixed itself in time for me to publish this. Once again I hope it was worth the wait and that you won't mind review to tell me what you thought about it.**

**Thanks.**


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